EV fleets growing at pace across the UK

The bi-annual Future of Transport research, which surveys 100 UK fleet managers operating more than 100 vehicles, reveals they expect to have purely electric fleets within an average of four years, down from seven years in the previous survey.  

The majority (86%) said they had maintained or increased the number of EVs in their fleet over the previous 12 months, up from 66 per cent from the previous report. Almost two-thirds of fleet managers are more likely to improve their EV offering after the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate delay, and more than half believe policy makers are doing enough to convince businesses to switch.  

They are also planning to reach full electrification earlier despite the government’s delay to the ZEV mandate, which now requires all new cars to be zero emissions by 2035. 

“It’s great news that the Future of Transport research shows that operators are planning for reduced  timeframesreduced timeframes for reaching 100% electric fleets,” says Denise Beedell, Senior Policy Manager at Logistics UK.

“Our Electric Vehicle Report 2023 showed that logistics businesses are keen to invest in sustainable technology to help them meet national and international obligations for reaching net zero by 2050. However, there are still challenges for fleet operators, which is why Logistics UK has partnered with other organisations on the Zero Emission Van Plan campaign, which highlights the many challenges still to be addressed to meet the deadlines.

"We want to see improved charging to ensure operators can access affordable and fit for purpose charge points, increased fiscal support including grants to make new and used e-vans more affordable, and full alignment of regulations of 4.25t ZEVs with diesel vans.”   

The report was produced by fleet management and funding specialist Lex Autolease, part of Lloyds Banking Group. Nick Williams, managing director at Lex Autolease, said more and more businesses are adopting "cleaner and greener" vehicles despite significant changes to government policy.

"This is largely because they are unwavering on their own commitments," he added. "Switching to electric is helping them to make progress towards their sustainability targets, boost their green credentials for competitive tenders and enhance their propositions for current and prospective employees.” 

Published On: 28/03/2024 16:00:00

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